


What Drew Did During the War

by ArtofPadillaAZ



Series: Shared Secrets [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Blood, Blood and Injury, Charmspeak (Percy Jackson), Drew is a healer, F/F, Minor Character Death, One Shot, Slight canon diversion, Violence, she is actually good at it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-22
Updated: 2020-08-22
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:21:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26039374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArtofPadillaAZ/pseuds/ArtofPadillaAZ
Summary: Set during the final scenes of Blood Of Olympus, Drew serves as a medic under her estranged friend Will. She's a fast runner and manages to weave through the fighting with ease. She patches up injured and brings other runners supplies. When the fighting is over she has a moment with Reyna before returning to her cabin to clean up and sleep.It's not directly related to the Shared Secrets series but is what I had in mind when I wrote it.
Relationships: Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano/Drew Tanaka, Silena Beauregard & Clarisse la Rue, Silena Beauregard & Drew Tanaka, Will Solace & Drew Tanaka
Series: Shared Secrets [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1813438
Comments: 4
Kudos: 26





	What Drew Did During the War

Drew knew a war was coming for days, weeks even. She remembered the battles the Ancient Romans fought from world history courses that briefly covered the Greco-Roman world, Egypt, and the Indus Valley. If Camp Jupiter was anything like the old Roman Empire there was going to be a lot of injuries, and not to mention Gaea was trying to kill them all. So Drew spent the last few weeks training. She wasn't a fighter, but she was a runner. She could run for a long time; during spring break, she had participated in a 10K and finished in just under 50 minutes (49:55 to be exact). Drew had done that run with zero extra weight except for the mp3 strapped to her arm. Drew has spent the last few weeks training to carry a backpack filled with anything she might need to stabilize an injured person long enough to get them to the Apollo Cabin or at the very least away from the fighting.

She ran different routes every day pushing herself to go further each time. She weighed down her backpack with rocks she picked up around camp and filled it until she could feel it's weight but left it light enough to not make her lean forward like she had to do with her school backpack. She had even used the weighted backpack to strengthen her arms and legs, and after about a week and a half she felt stronger. 

Each day got closer and closer to the fight against the Romans and Gaea and the day The Seven, Percy and Annabeth, Jason, two Romans, a tiny not so funny Latino who kept trying to flirt with her, and her slightly younger, daughter of a movie star sister, were supposed to save the world. The closer Drew got to that day the more determined she became to do a good job. She didn't want to lose another sibling and didn't know what she would do if she did.

The day before everything was supposed to fall apart Drew went to see an old friend, Will Solstice. They hadn't been particularly close the last few years, but she figured he would be expecting her. After all, he taught her basic first aid and how to use unconventional items as a tourniquet or splint (in return Drew taught him how to repair torn clothes and how to use a flat iron).

Drew found him taking inventory of all the medical supplies available in the med bay. "Hey, Hon, I need some supplies for tomorrow."

The curly haired blonde jumped and Drew snickered quietly. "Gods Drew. Learn to knock."

"Sorry, my schedule is a bit full."

"I'm sure you would have time if you cut a few minutes off your gossip time. You said you needed supplies for tomorrow?"

"Yes."

"I can't give you them, you know that. The day of anyone providing medical care receives a bag with prepackaged supplies."

"I know that. But you and I both know I'm the fastest runner you'll have tomorrow and many will decide to fight instead. You'll have extra bags."

"That better not have been Charmspeak, Drew."

"Oh please. Why would I use Charmspeak to convince you of the truth?" 

Will thought for a second, his bright eyes taking in her expression while his brain decided her level of honesty. "Alright," Will decided, "I'll give you supplies. Come on." Will motioned for her to follow him.

He led her to a shelf containing gauze and medical tape. "Open your bag. I'm just going to toss things in and we'll organize once I've got everything."

Drew listened and held open her bag. They moved along the shelves as Will tossed gauze, tape, liquid bandage, rulers, rope, Neosporin, pre cut cloth, medical stapler, extra staples, antiseptic wipes, containers of ambrosia (liquid and solid) and other medical salves. 

Will looked at the overflowing bag, "okay that's enough." He sat down where she was standing and Drew followed.

They organized the supplies, and as Will placed them in the bag he told her her instructions for the next day. 

"You probably won't need the Neosporin until after the fight- only use it on smaller cuts and burns after they've been clean. The gauze is for heavier bleeding, use the cloths for lighter stuff if necessary- '' Drew of course knew all of this but a final reminder was always helpful. "Rulers and cloths are for splints. Cloths are also for tourniquets. Stapler to reattach limbs- remember a bit of ambrosia with major injuries. Liquid bandage for smaller cuts also to be used after all the fighting and once a cut is cleaned. Hence the antiseptic cloths. If you need to give stitches always rinse off blood so you can see. I didn't give you any supplies to give stitches. I know you have things that will work. The salve you will probably use after as well. 

Tomorrow, I want you to handle the more major injuries. You see something. Just go to it. You can get to them faster than anyone and with major injuries and grave injuries every second makes a difference. Stabilized them  then get them away from the fight. Do your best to get them to someone who can look after them. And please, Drew, have good bedside manner. A calm voice can do a lot to help people relax. And last but not least have a water bottle on you. You're going to be doing a lot of running. I don't need you passing out from dehydration."

"Alright. Thanks Doll. For the supplies." Drew stood to leave slipping on her backpack as she did so. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Good night, Drew."

"Night."

Drew exited the cabin and made her way to her own. She walked past Hephaestus and Ares kids as they rushed off in various directions to set up more defences along the camp's border. They have been doing that for days. Aries kids laid landmines near one of the predicted entrances the Romans would take while Hephaestus kids with some help from the Athena Cabin built and set up blockades at strategic points.

Drew twisted the knob to her cabin door feeling the cool metal on her palm and releasing a heavy sigh from deep in her chest as she pushed open the door. Inside the cabin were all her brother's and sisters- she slipped off her shoes and went to her bed. Her siblings were laying out their clothes for tomorrow. Drew followed her siblings lead and grabbed running shorts with a 6 inseam, a light sleeveless shirt, the most comfortable sports bra she owned, running socks that had a second layer at the toes and heel, had arch support and would rest above her ankles (every time she wore no show socks something went wrong on her run), and her favorite running shoes. Her favorite running shoes matched her shorts (turquoise and pink). They were her favorite brand because they consistently were breathable, comfortable, and beautiful. The first pair she ever wore were from Silena.

About four summers ago Silena arrived to camp a few days later than usual with a loosely wrapped box. When the two of them had a moment alone Silena smiled softly and handed Drew the box. "I'm sorry it's wrapped poorly. I was in a hurry."

"It's alright, Silena." Drew hooked a finger under the paper and pulled. When she opened the box she saw pink running shoes.

"They're trail running shoes. They'll work a thousand times better than your Vans."

"Thank you Silena. Can't wait to use them."

"I hope I got the size right."

Drew checked the inside tag. "You did."

"Do you wanna go on a run tomorrow morning?"

"Only if we go swimming after."

"I think we can."

Drew smiled at the memory. Since that summer Drew always came to camp with trail running shoes. She set her shoes and clothes on the foot of her bed and laid down. She closed her eyes listening to the occasional chatter of her siblings. They were quieter today, but Drew guessed that was what happened when people were preparing for war.

"Drew" -One of her brothers said carefully- "are you awake?"

She opened her eyes and sat up. "I am. What's wrong Hon?"

"What's going to happen tomorrow?" He asked. He was three years younger than Drew and had arrived at camp the last year. If it wasn't for the impending fight Drew would have considered him lucky for having never known anyone who has died in a demi-god related battle.

"Tomorrow most of the campers will be fighting. And when it's over many will have various injuries." Drew said simply.

"But what will it be like?"

"Loud. Lots of yelling. You'll hear cabin leaders giving orders, and you might get a bit disoriented."

"You're our cabin leader. Won't you be fighting?"

"No. I'll be pulling injured from the fighting."

"What does that mean for us?" Another sibling asked.

"I want you all in pairs at the minimum. Look after each other. If you want to fight I won't stop you. You'll partner up with another cabin if that's what you choose. If you don't want to fight you'll be treating the wounded. Pulling people out of the fighting and patching up wounds until they can be seen by any member of the Apollo Cabin. If that's what you want to do, look out for siblings and others doing that job. It's a solo job but do your best to know where others are. And when the fighting is over and everyone is in camp borders we all meet back here. No exceptions."

The siblings all nodded. No charmspeak was necessary for them to do what Drew wanted this time. 

"We all need sleep. If you're not done preparing for tomorrow you have five minutes then all lights are being turned off." Drew laid back down and closed her eyes once more. 

In the morning Drew started her day with stretches. There was no telling when her job would start and it was important to have her muscles warmed up unless she wanted to pull something after running for a short period of time. Once she was finished she met with her cabin for breakfast where she had something high in sugar and fulfilling.

The next several hours passed in anxious waiting. The Romans and the monsters standing behind them were closer to camp than they ever had been before, and the number of monsters had grown double what they were when Drew saw them last. Drew had snuck out of camp to see them days earlier. If they weren't intimidating then with their silhouettes outlined by the sun they sure are now when they could attack camp at any moment. 

Will gathered all his medics in the early evening and went over their job. Drew looked around at the group. There were a few of the youngest Apollo, Athena, Iris, and Demeter kids, and half of her cabin. Drew was the oldest having just turned 16 before summer began. She was also the tallest and the only one not wearing leg and thigh guards and arm guards since she found the metal to be restrictive.

Will finished speaking and everyone split up to head to different points where the battle was predicted to take place. Drew stayed behind to find out where Will was going to be.

"Drew. What's up?"

"Just wondering' where you'll be?"

"I'm on sabotage duty. We're going to try to take down as many catapults as possible. Just remember to go where you think you're needed, and here," Will pulled out what looked like a thin metal box and held it out to her.

Once it was in her hand she recognized it. A butterfly knife. Drew looked at him quizzically, "What do i need this for?"

"Just in case. I w-" yelling outside camp caught their attention. "I got to go. You need to head out too."

Drew nodded and they both ran off. Drew pushed past the Cave of the Oracle and Thalia's Tree towards the farm road. The closer she got the louder the fighting became. Just before the road was Camp Jupiter holding a line. Behind them was a line of monsters. They weren't moving. Just watching. A figure In front of them appeared to be the one giving the orders. He said something to the person next to him and disappeared into the army of monsters. A scream nearby caught her attention and she ran towards it.

It was an eighteen-year-old from the Hephestus cabin he had been at camp since before Drew first arrived, and he had taken an arrow to the knee. Drew knelt at his side. "Hey," Drew said, putting a hand on his shoulder, "Hey, just breathe. I'm gonna get you out of here."

"Drew?"

"Yeah it's me-" Drew wanted to use his name knowing it would help him calm down, but she simply did not know what it was. "-Sweetheart. I have to get this arrow out of your leg then I'm going to heal you a bit and get you out of here."

She pulled out a container of cubed ambrosia, gauze and opened the butterfly knife. One hand held the shaft of the arrow while the other tried to snap off the arrow head. She could hear the wood creak as she tried to carefully remove the metal. It wasn't working. "Screw it," she muttered. She gripped the metal firmly and pulled hard. The arrow head broke off with a snap and the son of Hephestus groaned in pain.

"Sorry Hon. That was just the easy part. I need you to stay as still as you can." She placed a small piece of ambrosia in his hand and closed his hand. "Don't eat this til after the arrow is out."

He gave her a small nod. Drew pulls her hand straight up as fast as she could. Blood poured from the wound for a few seconds until the ambrosia took effect. The worst of the damage was healed. Drew wrapped his knee then put the ambrosia away. 

She held the knife in one hand and helped him to his feet. He was heavy. Drew adjusted the weight and began walking. Their first few steps were shaky and they had both nearly fallen, but they worked out s system. They walked at least forty feet away from the battle. Deciding it was a safe enough distance, Drew helped him sit down under a tree.

"Stay here. Someone from the Apollo Cabin will finish healing you."

"Thank you."

"Not a problem, Sweetheart. I've got to go, but you stay safe." Drew closed the knife and jogged off. 

It wasn't long before she saw another camper on the ground. A few others stood in front shielding them from further injury. Drew increased her speed. She dodged a few Romans and zipped around her fellow campers. 

She recognized this camper too. He was younger than her, and had been at camp maybe a year now.  _ He dated a brother? Or a sister? Maybe it was both? _ Drew wasn't sure. 

"Drew, thank gods! You gotta help me."

"I plan on it." She looked closely at him, finding only a broken arm. "You got a broken arm. I'll set it. I don't recommend still fighting."

The splint was easy to make even with the unconventional supplies. The hardest part was focusing long enough to finish it. She was closer to the center of the fighting and the three peers protecting her and the younger boy were actively fighting Romans. Metal hit metal and rang in her ears uncomfortably. "Alright, you're done. I gotta go. Try not to break anything else."

They both stood and went their separate ways. Drew ran to the next person and the boy returned to fighting but moved further back. 

She finished setting a broken leg and was in the middle of pulling the girl to her feet when two of her siblings stopped her. 

"Drew, we can take her back. There's someone bleeding that way."

"Well why aren't you two heading over there?!"

"It's nearly a mile. We'll never make it." The ‘on time’ went unsaid.

"Alright. I left someone back there," she pointed the direction where she left the Hephestus kid. "It's away from the fighting."

"We'll take her there." Both her siblings took the girl from Drew, and as soon as Drew was free she began running. 

There was no guarantee she was going to make it on time. She had no idea what this person's injuries were like. She made her way through the fighting. She ran a few minutes and ended up in the area with little fighting. Looking ahead she spotted a group of 3 kneeling around something she couldn't see. Figuring it was the injured she was told about. She sped up, and Gods she hated being right.

There was blood. A lot of it. Coming from the arm. A sister's hands were covered in it. Her sister looked up at her, blue eyes filled with fear. "Drew, thank gods. You gotta help us. The bleeding has slowed, but we don't know what else to do."

Drew looked between the three trying to save the mystery campers life and noticed none of them were wearing a backpack. "Alright. One of you needs to move over."

Drew reached in her backpack and grabbed ambrosia, gasuse and medical tape. She handed the ambrosia to the person to her left and leaned over to press the gauze on the cut. "Did you give them some ambrosia?"

"Yeah."

Drew lifted her hands and checked the wound. "The bleeding has stopped but it's still open. Give them a little bit more." She looked at someone else. "There's antiseptic wipes in my bag. We have to clean off some of the blood if the tape is gonna stick."

They got the area around the stab wound cleaned and were taping down a new sheet of gauze when her sister said "What is that?"

They all followed her gaze and spotted monsters and dog headed men and Centaurs. They wore the symbol of Camp Jupiter, but it was obvious they weren't campers. They had moved closer to the Roman Campers line and had begun to attack them. Things were about to get a whole lot worse. 

"You three stay here. Protect them. I'll send someone over to help." She zipped up her backpack and left.

She ran straight towards the fighting. Camp Jupiter was getting hit from both sides. She looked around trying to find any one she knew. She spotted an orange shirt and moved towards it. They got knocked down, but not without taking a Roman with them. Drew stood between the two and assessed their injuries. The Camp Half-Blood camper had a dislocated or broken elbow, Drew wasn't really sure she would have to get a closer look, and the Roman had a deep laceration on his arm. She wasn't even sure if she should help him; they weren't exactly on the same side. She remembered the promise she made to herself and what the army of monsters have begun doing. She wouldn't let someone else lose a sibling if she could help it. She knelt at his side slipping off her backpack- "What the hell, Drew!" She reached for the liquid ambrosia and a cloth. "Why you helping him?"

Drew's eyes narrowed. She let a few drops of ambrosia drip onto the cut as she said, "If you haven't noticed, Someone told the monsters to begin attacking. The Roman's are fighting a war on two fronts, and if history has taught us anything they won't last long. It would be better if we worked together instead of trying to kill each other which Gaea wants to do to all of us." She found an antiseptic cloth and wiped away the blood to find that the cut was shallower than before. She put a few more drops of Ambrosia and watched as the laceration became more like a papercut. "You're all healed now, Hon."

"Thanks."

Drew turned around and did her best to set the broken arm. "There's some campers back there," Drew pointed to the direction she came from, "they might need some help. A camper is down. Blood loss from a cut on their arm. I healed them enough to stop the bleeding but they can't fight anymore. Three others are there protecting them."

"There are three people, why do they need help?" The Roman asked like the concept was foreign to him. 

Drew popped the joint back in place and looked back at the Roman surprised he hadn't returned to the fighting. "Two of them are my siblings and we aren't exactly known for being good fighters." Her words confused him more.

"I'll go," the other boy said.

"You have a broken arm."

"It's alright. Clarisse made all of us learn how to fight with one arm and the other hand."

Drew nodded. "Try not to undo my work."

“I’ll go with him.” The Roman stated.

“Isn’t that technically desertion? A crime if I am remembering military law correctly.”

“The Praetors are missing, my camp is being attacked by monsters and fighting yours because orders are orders. When the Praetors come back just don’t tell them what I did.”

Drew nodded and together they helped the Ares kid to his feet, and Drew handed him his sword before moving on to the next person.

Drew was finishing the knot on the cloth bandage when an explosion caught her attention. She looked in the direction of the noise and saw a mix of dirt and smoke in the air. A second explosion went off a short distance away and Drew realized the cause. The landmines.

She ran as fast as she could twisting around campers, ducking swords and jumping over kicked out legs. A few times she dropped to the ground and slid a few feet. At the edge of the minefield she saw a small group of Greeks were the closest to her off to her left directly in front of her were Romans. A quick glance at the Greeks told her they have a medic with them. A few Romans tried to get closer to the group sitting on the ground. Drew yelled at them filling her voice with Charmspeak, "Everybody stop walking!" She called to the Greeks attempting to give medical aid to one of their friends, "Do you have enough supplies?"

"Could use some more ambrosia."

"Alright, I'll come to you." She looked back at the Romans finding a few of them had moved a few steps. "Hey! What did I tell you!" Drew yelled using Charmspeak once more, "stop walking!"

Drew looked at the ground between her and her peers finding circles where the ground had been disturbed.  _ Those must be the mines. _ She plotted a path and carefully followed it. She handed one of the campers a few cubes of ambrosia and looked at the larger group of Romans. 

"What are the injuries over there?"

"Uh she's bleeding a lot from her leg and arm. It's bad."

Drew plotted the path she would take step by step. She couldn't take her time. A Roman created a space or her and she dropped to her knees and began to access the damage.

The girl had shrapnel in her legs and arms. The bleeding in her left leg was the most worrying. One of her brothers in arms appeared to have his fingers inside her leg pinching something closed. The leg looked torn apart everywhere metal armor wasn't. The girls pants have been ripped around her wounds to reveal her dark skin. She needed the metal shards removed from her arms and legs before she could be healed.

"What happens if you remove your fingers?"

"She'll bleed, a lot."

Drew nodded and broke off a piece of ambrosia and handed it to the only other person without bloody hands. "She needs to eat this. It will heal her a little bit. Hopefully enough to stop the bleeding but not enough to make her heal around the metal."

She pulled out gauze and the butterfly knife and laid them on the girl's stomach. She grabbed a few larger strips of cloth and medical tape and laid them out as well.

"Remove your fingers slowly."

Drew watched ready to reapply pressure to the girl's leg. The girl was still bleeding, not a dangerous amount. She cut a piece of gauze into a smaller square and placed it over the wound applying the slightest bit of pressure.

"Now we can pull out the metal." She looked at the girl, "we'll try to be quick. Do your best to stay as still as you can."

"We can help." A voice said from behind her. Drew turned and saw the Romans who were trying to get here earlier.  _ Looks like they've figured out how to navigate the minefield. _

One knelt down next to her and placed his hands on the injured teen's leg just above her ankle. The other held down her shoulders so they could remove the metal from her arms.

They all did the best they could to pull the metal out with their bare hands. It became more difficult as their hands became slick with blood. Drew found herself wiping her hands on her shirt. A large number of metal shards were impeded deep in the girl's skin; they had to make the cut larger in order to pinch the metal between their fingers and pull it out. The entire time the girl screamed and moaned in pain. She occasionally broke free and accidentally slapped or kicked someone (not that anyone could blame her). 

They had only been working a few minutes when they heard the armies of both camps and the army of monsters stop fighting. Drew looked over confused. She had heard no orders for them to do that. Campers were looking west at the setting sun that had turned the sky orange. Drew followed their gaze and spotted pegasi outlined by the orange sun. And on the lead pegasus was a figure. Drew could make out a cloak sparkling in the sunlight and what could be a long braid, and below the girl and the pegasi was a statue. It was a statue Drew had only ever seen in drawings in textbooks and documentaries. The Athena Parthenos. 

The statue was set down near Thalia's Tree and the girl on the pegasus, Guido, landed in the clearing behind the Greeks. She yelled that she was returning it in an act of peace. Her voice carried to even the person furthest away from her. She wanted the Romans to stand with the Greeks. 

A smaller darker figure ran up to join her. It was Nico Di Angelo. "Listen to her!" He yelled. "Reyna risked her life for all of you!"

It was out of character for Nico to speak in front of a large group of people let alone tell them what to do. Drew had to admit, it was very brave of him. "If you haven't noticed Gaea is rising. If-"

YOU WILL DIE. 

The voice shook the earth. Drew felt her chest tighten as the wind picked up. The ground felt stickier than it had been seconds earlier. Drew looked down and saw the bloody earth bubbling slightly. A bubble popped below her leg and she felt the bloody mixture stick to her leg and move as if it was trying to pull her down. Gaea was officially awake, and they were surrounded.

The Roman girl yelled, "CLOSE RANKS!" Everyone standing rushed to stand shoulder to shoulder with the nearest person.

Some pasty blond Drew recognized as the Roman who led the army to Camp pushed through his  _ auxilia _ troops- the monsters Drew understood to be the ones everyone was concerned about. The ones that had the Romans fighting on two fronts.

Drew rushed to finish removing the metal from the girl and quickly bandaged her. “By camp over there. I’ve been leaving injured. Can you take her there?” Drew asked all the Romans knowing she was unable to carry the girl let alone drag her through a minefield without accidentally blowing them up.

“Yes.”

“Here’s an extra piece of ambrosia. You only need a tiny bit to heal. Too much and it will kill you.”

Drew heard the clopping of horse hooves and turned to look. There was a squad of Centaurs joining the fight. “Don’t look those dudes in the eye unless you want to fight them.” one of the other boys told her.

“You two take her to where the other injured are, we’ll try to create a space to reach the others.” One decided standing up.

“Who says you get to be the one to decide what we do?” A girl asked. 

“I’m the oldest.”

Drew knew the type of arguing. Siblings. “It doesn’t matter who does what job,” Drew snapped using a bit of charmspeak, “we can’t stay here long.”

“The Greek is right. Whatever we do we need to decide fast. I don’t wanna be in this minefield once it’s dark.”

They all stood to leave when Drew felt something warm hit her arm. She brushed her hand down her arm and found fresh blood on her hand. She looked at the person next to her and saw blood dripping down his hand. “Hey, wait. You’re bleeding.”

He looked at her and in the setting sun his helmet reflected the light. She looked past the reflective metal into his dark eyes. “I’m alright. I’ll take care of it later.”

“I can take care of it right now.”

“No, it’s alright.”

“Okay. You have the ambrosia I gave you. Take a small piece of it. It will at least stop your bleeding.”

He nodded and jogged to catch up with his fellow soldiers.

Drew stayed where she was and studied the battle infront of her. How was she going to slip into that and pull an injured person away from that. She looked for any space and thought she spotted a way in when an explosion nearby knocked her down. 

Disoriented, she looked around off to one side and spotted a very injured Two Headed man; there were more behind them as well as a few Dog-headed men. Both creatures had very little fashion sense. The Two Headed men seemed to be wearing whatever cloth they found that fit around them. They were poorly dressed and made Brooklyn’s homeless look like kings (at least the few Drew had met had tried to keep clean and wore outfits while nearly monochromatic at least had their entire bodies covered).

The other Two Headed men hadn’t seen her yet. She thought she could use this to her advantage and picked up a few rocks before she stood up. She faced them then looked behind her. If she did everything right she could clear the minefield without injury. 

She threw a rock at the Two Headed men, she had missed hitting them but captured their attention. She turned slightly and threw the rest of the rocks in the direction of the Dog-headed men and captured their attention as well as some Centaurs. A Centaur ran at her and she spun on her heel and ran. She ran on the sections of raised earth avoiding the pits. Explosions went off behind her hitting enemies with celestial bronze shards. One explosion was close enough to her that it knocked her flat on her stomach. Her face connected with her forearms. After a few moments she stood silently thanking the Ares Cabin for making the path she was on wide enough for a person twice her size to lay on it. An arrow blew past her head, and she yelped before sprinting. She ran towards Half-Blood Hill and darted around some trees pausing behind what she hoped was adequate cover. In her brief pause to catch her breath she felt a dull ache in her thigh. She twisted to look at the area and found the source of her pain- a piece of metal easily the size of her hand was embedded in her toned thigh. She heard the crunching of sticks and leaves nearby. She covered her mouth with a hand and pulled out the metal. One of the Dog-headed men spotted her and alerted the rest of his group. Drew dropped the metal and began running once more before any of the monsters could get close. 

She looped back around to the campers and spotted her brother who looked at her with wide eyes. A few other campers noticed her and created a space. Drew slipped in the army a few seconds later Dog-headed men slammed into Roman shields. Behind them were a few Two Headed men and a Centaur. 

Someone tapped Drew’s shoulder. She whirled around and faced a helmet-less Roman with freckles and copper hair. “You’re a medic, right?”

“Today.”

He made a motion for her to follow. “My brother is hurt bad. We pulled him to the center. There are other injured there. Reyna wants to get them out of here to somewhere safe.

Drew had no idea who Reyna was but nodded anyways. In the center was a larger open space where some injured were laying. There was only one medic tending to the six injured. She slipped off her backpack and pulled out both forms of ambrosia.

The Roman led her to where the other medic was and kneeled at the injured boy’s side. He had been hit on part of the face and upper arm. Drew swore if she looked close enough she would see the boy’s bone. 

She opened the cubed ambrosia and grabbed the most appropriate bite sized piece. “Make sure he eats this. It will help heal him.” She put the cubed ambrosia away and grabbed gauze. She passed some to the other medic and placed the rest on the boys shoulder and applied pressure. He had healed a lot but was still bleeding. Blood seeped through the layers of gauze soaking Drew’s hands. She increased the pressure. After some time she removed her hands. He was still bleeding. Drew grabbed the medical stapler to close the wound and watched his breathing. 

She patted his face, “Hey stay awake, Dear. You can’t fall asleep right now.” his breathing was slow and his eyes were half closed. “Wake up,” Drew said with Charmspeak. The boy’s eyes snapped open. “You’re alright. I’m going to close the wound. It might hurt a bit.”

She pinched the skin together and stapled it. Three staples and it was closed. The other medic looked at her like she was a genius. “There are a few others who could use that.” he told her. “Can I borrow that?”

“Yeah, here.”

She turned back to the injured boy. She opened the liquid ambrosia and pulled out the eye dropper. She released a few drops of the golden liquid over the now closed cut and watched as his bleeding had completely stopped. She moved her hand and released a few more drops over the cut on his face. Now she had to clean him up and cover the wounds. Salve and gauze went over his cuts. “Stay awake, okay. I need to go check on the others. I’ll be back shortly.”

She made her way to the other medic. “What have the other injuries been like?”

“Mostly the same. There’s a few broken bones. I don’t have anything to heal them with. We need to think about how we are going to move them.”

“I can do it. Keep the ones here stable and awake. I’ll go around and give them some ambrosia. The first boy is ready. He lost a lot of blood. We might not be able to move him.”

“I’m working my way back. I'll check on him.”

Drew nodded. She worked her way around the group of injured and passed out ambrosia. Those with broken bones were near completely healed and decided to stick around and help move the other injured. 

The first boy was standing with the support of the Roman medic. Drew traded places with them and handed him the bottle of liquid ambrosia. She instructed him on how to use it. 

With the help from a few fighters Drew walked the injured boy to the spot where she had been leaving injured just before the border of Camp Half-Blood. There were more injured than she remembered bringing. 

The fighters who had protected Drew and the boy helped her lay him down. They got him settled when a son of Apollo walked up to her. “Are the bandages his only injuries. From what I could tell. Do you have supplies here?”

“Some. Could use some more ambrosia.”

“There’s a few boxes in my backpack, feel free to take one.” she turned away from him and lowered herself to his height. She waited until she heard the backpack close before turning back to him. “There’s at least three more I’ll be bringing back here.”

“Alright. If you see any of my siblings send them here. I could use another set of hands.”

“Will do. See you in a bit, Hon.”

Drew rushed back to the fighting and saw that the combined camps managed to push their enemies back a few inches. It was easier for Drew and the others to make their way back to the center. She helped another person to their feet. It was hard to support this girl. She was at least a foot shorter than Drew. 

The Roman medic approached her before she left. “I’m out of supplies.”

Drew looked around for anyone wearing a backpack to call them over to help. When she didn’t find someone she did the next best thing: capturing the attention of a CHB camper. “Hey, I need you to find another medic. Someone wearing a backpack. We’re running low on supplies here.”

“I’m on it.” the camper ran off.

The ground began to shake. Softly at first then it was like a rug had been pulled out from other them. Campers fell to the ground, including Drew and the young teen she was supporting. Through all the chatter of people and surprised screams the voice of the girl who returned the Athena Parthenos boomed. “EVERYBODY UP!” Drew struggled to find her footing in the shaking dirt. She was about to fall again when someone’s arm wrapped around her, holding her inplace. The person walked around her and helped the girl up. Drew realized it was Clarisse- Silena’s former best friend whom she wanted nothing to do with. “Thanks.”

Clarisse gave her a small smile and nodded towards the girl. “Get her out of here.”

Drew returned to her previous position and took careful steps. Together they fought their way across the quaking earth step by step. The pair nearly collapsed steps away from their destination. One of the self appointed guards led them to an empty space. 

“Have you seen any of my siblings, Drew.”

_ Oh shit, I forgot I was supposed to find one of Apollo’s children.  _ “No, not yet, Hon. I sent someone to find another person with a backpack the medic down there is out of supplies”

“Give them some of your gauze and cloths since you’re bringing people here.”

Drew noticed the grass wrapping itself around the fingers of the people laying down. “What is going on here?”

“The grass is trying to hold those who aren’t moving much down. I’ve been having people go around and cut it.”

“You're still good on supplies, Sweetheart?”

“For now.”

“I’ll be right back.”

Drew began to jog back when the earth shook violently once more. She stumbled but stayed upright. The ground split open in front of her. She jumped over the crack with ease and continued on. She made it back to the other injured campers and saw mostly new faces. The others have been moved by other campers. Drew remembered seeing them on her way back. 

“Drew! You’re here.” Lacy yelled.

“Sweetheart, you're the one they found?”

“Yes. I am running low on supplies.”

Drew opened her hiking backpack and pulled out an unopened box of gauze and a lump of cut cloth. “I have extras.” She handed the stack to Lacey. Then moved on to the Roman medic. “Hey, you’re out of supplies, right?”

“Yes.”

She placed a box of gauze in his hands. “I’m looking for an Apollo kid; have any come by. They need help at the makeshift field hospital. There’s only one medic there.”

“I’m an Apollo kid.”

“Any siblings nearby?”

“I’m sure I can find a few. You start patching people up and I’ll go look.” He handed back the gause.

“Alright.”

They parted ways. Drew knelt at someone's side and applied pressure to their arm. The bleeding was too much. Drew reached in her bag for a strip of cloth, tucked in under the person’s arm above the wound and tied it. She pulled it as tight as she could then knotted it. She needed to get them out of here and to a child of Apollo. She pulled them to their feet and put their good arm over her shoulder. She was going to hand them off to someone else to take them to the field hospital when the Roman came back with a few others.

“This is my brother and sister.”

“Great, we need to get this person to the field hospital. At least one of you need to come with me.”

“I’ll go.” The sister volunteered. “I’ll trade you places.”

Drew nodded. And transferred the nearly unconscious person to the other person. Drew led the two Romans to the field hospital. On the very edges of the campers line she spotted Katie. She put a hand on their arm and said, “I need your help, follow me.” 

“Drew, you’re back.”

“He’s got a deep cut on his arm. We need to take care of this immediately.” Roman said.

“Who’s this?”

“Roman daughter of Apollo. She’s gonna stay here and help.”

“What did you need me for, Drew.”

“The grass is starting to grow around people’s bodies. I figured you could do something.”

“I’ll try. I make no promises.”

Drew furrowed her brows. A sound captured her attention instinct told her it was Charmspeek, which was weird she hadn’t said anything. She looked at camp and saw what she thought were two floating figures in the deep orange sky. Then she realized where the Charmspeak came from; Piper. The Seven had returned. 

“The earthquakes stopped.” Katie noted.

Drew looked at one of the campers laying down. The grass that was once snugly around their fingers was now loose and made no effort to grow and retighten. Not only that, the wind had stopped howling. “Gaea’s asleep.”

“Does that mean we won?”

“No.” Drew said simply. “We still have work to do.”

“How much gauze do you have?”

“Few boxes I think.”

“Leave some of it here. I’ll be out soon.”

Drew nodded and handed over two boxes and a vial of liquid ambrosia. She only had two boxes of gauze left and 1 full bottle of ambrosia.

Drew ran back, dodging swings from Dog-headed men and Two Headed men. She pushed past the first few lines and nearly ran into Annabeth. They both stared at each other for a moment before looking away and continuing their tasks. 

Back at the center Drew knelt next to one of Clarisse’s siblings. They needed stitches, something that was too hard to give in near darkness. She grabbed the stapler from her bag and used it in place of staples. She applied a salve and moved on to the next person.

“Drew?” Will asked carefully.

“Yes, Hon?”

“Were running out of supplies here.”

“So is the field hospital.”

Will sighed. “Give them the rest of your gauze and ambrosia. And leave the cloth strips here. The other medics are on their way here anyone with gauze will give it to you to take to the field hospital. We’ll have some staplers here. I’ll have you take some as well.”

“Do I keep the half full bottle of ambrosia? I have a full one in my backpack.”

“Yes keep the half full bottle, a few cloth strips and rulers, and your stapler.” 

“Alright.” Drew removed all the bundles of cloth strips except one and handed them to Will along with most of the rulers.

More medics with backpacks arrived and handed over what little gauze and ambrosia they had left. Drew zipped the backpack closed. “Drew, before you come back here,” Will began, “Can you grab more cloth from camp. We’re gonna need it.”

Drew nodded. “I’ll grab what I can.”

“Hurry.”

Drew took off running. She dropped off the gauze and ambrosia and staplers. Before she left she told one of the Apollo kids that more would join them soon and Will was assigning new jobs.

In the distance she spotted the lights from cabins and ran to the nearest one. She tossed open the door. There was a pile of freshly cleaned sheets on a table.  _ Thank the gods, the Demeter Cabin hadn’t changed their sheets yet.  _ Drew opened her backpack and stuffed as many sheets as she could inside. She closed it as much as she could and ran back to the medics. 

Both camps had increased the ground they held in the minutes she was gone. She easily made her way back and began taking out the sheets. The people not helping the injured began to tear the sheets into strips. A small pile was created in seconds. Will handed her the entire thing. “Take this back to the field hospital. I’ll be going with you.” Will told her. Drew waited until Will had helped someone to their feet and was successfully supporting them. 

They moved as quickly as they could in the dark. Drew had the cloth strips bundled in one arm and the Celestial bronze butterfly knife in her other hand. The metal glowed in the near complete darkness and provided some extra light. Halfway to the field hospital an explosion went off in the minefield. Will and Drew looked that direction then at each other. “Go, I’ve got this.” 

Drew ran over and scanned the field. She couldn’t see anything that told her who or what set off the landmine. “Hey! We’re over here.” Drew turned to the sounds and spotted a group of campers in the middle of the field. Two Headed men were crossing the field towards them. Drew looked down at her feet then ahead a few feet. It was flat. She stepped forward. The spot where she would be taking her next step appeared to dip. She squatted and brought the knife closer to it. She was right so she looked to the space next to her. Clear. She repeated the process while the Two Headed men walked across the field setting off mines.

Dirt hit her as she moved closer to the group. An explosion close to her knocked her back. Fear rose in her chest. She did not want to get killed by a mine. She had ringing in her ears, an intense headache, and pain nearly all over her body. Carefully she rose to her feet and continued crossing the field placing more weight on her left leg. One of the campers grabbed her wrist and pulled her towards them. “You have to help us.” A higher pitched voice said. “She’s bleeding too much. I don’t know what to do.”

Drew knelt down and did her best to feel what was wrong. The ground beneath her was wet and sticky and she could feel what she thought could have been Jeans. She squinted attempting to focus better on the figure in front of her. She looked up and saw the injured girl’s face. She was blinking slowly. Drew dragged her eyes down to the teens arms. She couldn’t see anything except a faint outline, but she reached out feeling for a hand and found it. It was ice cold. Winter’s in New York cold.  _ Blood Loss _ . She pressed two fingers into their wrist and felt a weak pulse. Her eyes moved further down and began to panic. She was sitting where her legs should be.

She acted quickly and put tourniquets on what was left of the teens legs. She pulled as tight as she could. “One of you need to carry her. Follow me. Single file.” Drew stood and led them back the way she came. Silently praying she hadn’t mixed up her directions. 

Drew led the campers all the way to the field hospital as fast as she could while making sure they were keeping up. At the field hospital Drew turned to face them. She helped lay the girl on the ground then Drew registered the way the girl had moved when they laid her down and the glassiness in her eyes. Drew nearly burst into tears. The girl was dead. Drew stumbled back.  _ Maybe if I had been faster- _ someone touched her shoulder. Drew slowly turned and came face to face with Will.

“It’s not the time, Drew. We can’t stop yet.”

“I promised I wouldn’t-”

“You did everything you could. Injuries like that are hard to heal in the middle of the day, let alone in the dark.”

“If I just noticed sooner.”

“I don’t think it would have made much difference. Come on. I need help bringing more people here.”

Drew took a deep breath and winced at the smell of blood and something charred. “Let’s go.”

Drew ran back steps in front of Will, picked up an injured person and walked them back. She turned around to head back and saw a pack of Dog-headed men in the distance. The camps had gone through over half of the army or monsters. This new group would extend the battle by a few minutes.

She rushed back and grabbed another person and brought them back. She repeated this a few times when a Roman Camper stopped her.

“Will said you’re the fastest runner.”

“What do you need.”

“We’re running low on ambrosia here. In our camp we might have the draught we use there, but camp is on the other side of the road about two miles from here. I don’t know if any of it is there. I wasn’t in charge of supplies, and I haven’t been able to find my brother who was.”

“Which tent will it be in?”

“It will be in the open there will be a canopy over it. It will look like a stack of crates. You’ll probably find it next to a larger tent. One of the biggest there. There may be a cart nearby. Bring as much as you can back.”

“What do you need?”

“The draught. It's labeled. And bandages.” He held out a flashlight. “You might need this.”

“Thanks. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Drew ran as fast as she could. If her speed was consistent with her other times it would be eight to ten minutes to run the two miles. Her feet hit the ground at a standard rhythm. She focused on her breathing and keeping her arms from crossing in front of her. She slid under the swing of a Two Headed man and quickly jumped to her feet and kept going

“Drew! Where are you going?” Annabeth yelled.

“I’ll be right back! Have to go get something!” Drew yelled back, not wasting a second to turn around.

The sounds of battle grew quieter. Drew could hear the pounding of footsteps behind her, some were heavier than others. She looked behind her and spotted Annabeth and Dog-headed men. Annabeth drew a sword that was the same color as the moon. Drew couldn’t stop even if she wanted to. She said she would be back as fast as she could and she knew Annabeth could handle herself; Drew on the other hand wouldn’t be able to last in a fight.

She faced forward and kept running. Her muscles performed movements she was familiar with. Drew looked down briefly watching the separation in her steps she looked up to see the remains of the Romans camp. She focused on taking wider steps. 

As she drew closer, smaller tents for sleeping were missing. Larger tents had been destroyed. The only thing still standing was a canopy type tent like the ones used at marathons over the water tables.  _ Hopefully that’s the supplies. _

Drew skid to a stop and turned on the flashlight. She shined the light towards the canopy and saw crates. The butterfly knife fit under the wooden lid and she lifted to pry the box open. The wood creaked then the lid came free. Peering inside she found bandages. She moved to another box and saw it was labeled ‘Draught’. She opened the box and found water bottles. 

There was no way Drew could fit more than one box of water bottles in her backpack. She looked around for a cart and found one roughly three times the size of a child’s red Radio Flyer wagon overturned feet away. She jogged over and exclaimed it. The wheels looked fine. She spun it to be sure. It turned without an issue. Drew held the flashlight between her teeth and reached under the cart and began lifting it.

The wooden cart was awkward to move. It wasn’t terribly heavy; she pushed it on the side. It came up to her chest. She crouched down once more and slowly rolled it on its wheels praying something wouldn’t break as she did so. It shook into place, but stayed together. Drew let out a sigh in relief. She placed her hands on the bar and pushed it to the pile of crates and began loading it when Annabeth arrived out of breath.

“I think- this is the- last time- I call you lazy.”

“Thanks. Help me load this cart with bandages and the boxes labeled ‘draught’.”

They finished packing the cart with two layers of boxes and pushed it. It was difficult to get moving. Drew and Annabeth had to lean into it to get the wheels rolling, but once it was moving steadily Drew started to speed up. Drew and Annabeth reached the perfect speed. Not too fast to knock anything off.

The battle was still going on when they arrived back. A few Two Headed men charged at them. Drew pushed the cart onto the dirt road and worked her way across while Annabeth kept the Two Headed men away. The ground was raised on the other side of the road and caught the wheels. Drew ran to the otherside of the cart and attempted to lift it while pulling it. The wheels popped up and Drew continued pulling until the other wheels were on the grass.

She was moving the cart once more. A few feet away from the field hospital Drew and Will caught each other's eyes. Will ran over to help her.

“You made it!”

“There’s still more supplies back there.”

“This is enough. The battle is almost over. Someone can go get the rest later.”

“The top boxes are all bandages. The bottom ones are draught.”

Will motioned to what little soldiers were still guarding the field hospital to come over. “Where are all the guards?”

“Many returned to the fighting; there aren't many monsters left. A few minutes more and the fighting will be over.” Will explained handing a box to a fellow camper. “Get this to Kayla.”

Drew handed a box of Draught to a Roman Camper. “Give this to the Roman medic. She said she was out.”

“Drew,” Will said, handing her bandages, “Get these to the medics in the fighting. They’re out.”

Drew opened her backpack and shoved them inside. “I can take a few more.”

Will shoved another handful in her backpack. Then a third and fourth. Finally he picked up the box and dumped it in. some fell on the ground. Drew didn’t bother to pick them up. She closed her backpack and ran to the center. 

Her brother Mitchell was the first person she saw. “Hey, where’s Lacy? Thought you two were together?”

“Drew!” He gave her a quick hug. “She went with Val to take Conner to the field hospital.”

Drew opened her backpack revealing the bandages. “Heard you were out of these down here.”

“We are. There’s our pile of supplies.” he pointed at a stapler laying on the ground.

They removed the bandages from her backpack and Drew added her extra box of staples to the pile. She was about to head back to the field hospital when she spotted the mysterious girl with the cloak catch the person next to her as they fell. They had been stabbed. The girl stabbed the monster who injured her colleague in retaliation.

Drew rushed over and put an arm around the bleeding person’s waist and helped them stand. She looked in the girl's brown eyes and said “I got them from here.” the girl gave her a silent nod and returned to fighting. Drew walked the person around campers too engaged in a fight to step out of the way and towards the center and sat them down. They had been stabbed in the neck and shoulder and bleeding heavily. 

Drew slipped off their helmet and applied pressure to the side of their neck. “Hey, Hon,” Drew said calmly, noticing their panic, “I need you to calm down. I’m gonna get you patched up. Mitchell! Come here.”

“Yes, Drew?”

“There’s ambrosia in my backpack; Get it for me.”

“Here,”

“I can’t take it. You need to give them some.” Drew waited for her brother to give ambrosia then slowly removed her hands. They were still bleeding. “Shit. Give them a bit more.”

“But too much will-”

“I know, but they’re not chugging it.” Drew removed her hands once more finding the bleeding had stopped. She looked into the person’s eyes and smiled softly, “The bleeding has stopped. A bit more and you’ll be completely healed.”

“Thank you.”

“Not a problem, Dear.” She wiped her hands on her shirt and took the ambrosia from her brother. “Just a bit more of this and you should be good as new.” She dripped ambrosia on their neck and shoulder. The skin began to fuse back together. It wasn’t quite healed, so she added a bit more. “There. All done.”

“Thank you. I’m Jon.” 

Drew stood offering her and to help him up. “Drew.”

“I heard.”

It was weirdly quiet for a war. Drew looked around and spotted no monsters, just the glow of celestial bronze. The war was over. The mysterious girl appeared at Jon’s side. “You alright?” Drew’s eyes went wide at her voice; it sounded like how Belgium chocolate tastes.

“I am now, Praetor.”

“Come on, Let’s get the injured inside Camp Half-Blood’s border.” The girl began to lead Jon towards the field hospital. She turned and looked at Drew, “You coming?”

“Y-yeah.” She jogged to catch up.

The three of them arrived at the field hospital to find other campers preparing the most injured for transport via gurney. While a few others were helping injured walk to the Apollo cabin infirmary.

“Drew,” Will said. “We could use your help patching people up and getting them to infirmary. I’ve already sent people to get the rest of the supplies. Annabeth and Percy went with them.”

“Alright.”

Nico ran up to the Praetor, “Reyna, I talked to Dakota. He and Jason are taking a group to start setting up camp. I think Frank went with them.”

“Thanks for letting me know, Nico.”

Drew and Praetor Reyna went around tending to people's wounds and occasionally handing people new tasks (mostly Reyna). Reyna told her campers which of the injured to take back or where to head next, whether it was to Jason to help set up camp or to the supply crates the group led by Percy and Annabeth brought back to carry them into camp.

As injured were carried back to camp someone brought back stretchers. Drew helped load people on to them. Most of the people had been taken back to camp when Drew realized an Ares Camper she said needed to be taken back was still laying on a stretcher. She walked over to him and noticed he was asleep. She found the straps to the stretcher and strapped him in.

She lifted up one side and began pulling him back to camp centimeter by centimeter. “My gods,” she muttered, “What have you been eating.” Someone chuckled in front of her.

“Let me help.” Drew froze. She knew that voice; Praetor Reyna. Reyna picked up the other end of the stretcher and Drew realized, to her surprise, they were the same height.

“Of course,” she muttered, shaking her head.

“Used to being the tallest?”

“Yes. Having someone the same height sure makes this easier.”

“That, and you’re not pulling at least 200 pounds by yourself.”

“I would have made it to camp eventually.” This made Reyna laugh and Drew found herself wanting to make it happen again.

“Yeah, tomorrow morning.”

Drew chuckled. 

They fell into an awkward silence as they walked past the Temple of the Oracle. Drew looked at the Praetor’s forearm. She had a tattoo similar to the one Drew had seen on Jason months earlier. Reyna’s tattoo was a torch and sword, and the only reason Drew could see it was because it was glowing and pulsing like a slow heartbeat. The tattoo looked like burning coal, and Drew wondered if the girl's skin was actually burning. “Does it hurt?”

“Hmm?”

“Your tattoo. It’s glowing.” 

Reyna looked down then turned her wrist slightly as if she was trying to hide the tattoo. “It’s fine.”

“I think I have a salve in my bag for burns.”

“I don’t think that’s necessary at the moment.”

“Alright.”

“I should thank you.”

“For what?”

“I’ve heard a few stories from the Legion. You helped them before our camps were allies. It makes me believe lasting peace is possible.”

“Is that why you returned the Athena Parthenos?”

“Annabeth found it, but it could only be returned by a Roman.”

“Because the Romans stole it. Mortals history textbooks sometimes say it was destroyed during The Crusades after it was moved to Constantinople.”

“Yes. And every war between our camps since has been because of the theft.”

“We’re almost to the infirmary it’s past the lake and on the other side of the showers.”

Reyna nodded, and looked more tired than she had when they first started walking. Drew could still see the pulsing glow from her tattoo, but it had grown dimmer. 

Outside the cabins campers were standing around. Many had lost the adrenaline they had during the battle and were struggling to complete tasks. “Hey,” Drew said using her most commanding voice, “Wake up. I’m sure most of you have jobs to do.”

The campers who heard her looked at her quizzically. “Finish the task you started.” People returned to their tasks with new energy.

Reyna threw Drew a confused look, and Drew realized her Charmspeak may not have affected the Praetor. She chose not to press the topic not sure if it was an answer she wanted to hear.

They arrived at the Apollo Cabin. Campers moved out of their way and Piper and Kayla helped them move the still sleeping camper to an empty cot. 

Drew could see the Praetor’s tattoo better in the light. It was not black like Jason’s tattoo. She looked around at the other Roman campers and saw that their tattoos were also black. Her eyes went back to Reyna’s forearm. Her tattoo was dark red and the area surrounding it looked more like a sunburn the further from the tattoo Drew looked. It was like someone put a torch to her arm and attempted to trace over the tattoo. 

She looked at Piper then back at Reyna’s arm. If the Praetor was going to listen to anyone here it was probably her sister. Piper grabbed Reyna’s hand while Drew grabbed the salve she had in her backpack and handed it to Piper. “I’m going to our cabin. I told everyone we had to do a check in as soon as the battle was over.”

Piper nodded, “I’ll be there soon.”

Drew made her way back to her cabin. It was the first time she registered the ache in her shins, knees, shoulders and upper back as well as the coolness in her shoes and the weird squish they made with each step. Her head felt heavy and she could feel a slight pressure behind her eyes from tiredness.

Upon opening her cabin door she was hit with the smell of her sisters’ flowery perfume and acid like scent of her youngest brother's cologne. 

“Drew, you’re here.” multiple siblings said in unison.

“Hey, I don’t think we’re doing gossip time tonight.” Drew told them, slipping off her wet shoes. 

Her socked feet made an effort to stick to the cabin's wood floor as she crossed the room to the bathroom. She closed the door behind her. 

She turned on the sink and put her hands under the water. After a few moments the water turned pink. She grabbed a bar of soap not caring if it wasn’t hers and began to scrub her hand and forearms. The soap reached part of her arm and she hissed in pain. Quickly she rinsed off the soap and saw the reason for the stinging pain. Pieces of metal were in her arm, and now that she wiped off the dried blood and hit the metal, she was bleeding again.

Drew reached for a towel and patted her arms dry. She then grabbed a pair of tweezers and pulled a mix of Celestial bronze and regular metal from her arm and dropped it in the sink where the pieces made a little ‘tink’ upon hitting the porcelain. Once all the metal was out she turned on the water once more and held her arm under it until the water was nearly clear. She pat her arm dry once more then pulled off her shirt that suddenly felt very restrictive.

She tossed it in the sink and gave it a weird look.  _ I don’t remember putting on a red shirt.  _ The shirt had patches of scarlet red and some smaller patches of pink. Drew studied it for a second then looked in the mirror. The first thing she noticed was the color of her sports bra.  _ Okay, I definitely know I didn’t put on a bra this dark.  _ She took it off and grabbed the towel. She wet a section of it and began wiping her upper arms. She needed to get rid of this mix of something sticky on her skin and something dried on her skin pinching it.

This method wasn’t working too well. Upon realizing this she soaked the towel and dragged it over her skin. Cold water ran down her arms and chest cooling her down. She put down the towel and grabbed a second to pat herself dry.

She could feel this stickiness on her skin. She set the towel aside and picked up the wet one. She soaked it once more and was once again wiping down her skin. She dried her skin off once more. The towel was laid on one side of the counter and the wet cloths on the other. 

Drew searched through the bottles of soap on the counter looking for a face wash. Finding one she wet her face with closed eyes. Drew felt stinging on her cheek and forehead. Looking into the mirror she spotted the flash of metal. Using the tweezers she pulled out the shards then returned to washing her face. The water woke her up a bit helping her focus a bit better. 

Sitting on the edge of the toilet seat, Drew removed her reddish brown socks. It was more difficult than it should have been since they were wet and sticking to her skin. Once they were off Drew tossed them to the side and used the wet towel to wash her feet. 

Next, she soaked the towel she had used to dry herself and placed it over her lower legs. The towel was heavy on her legs and she could feel patches of stinging on her legs like she had razor burn. 

She rested her left heel on the counter and pulled out all the metal she could see. Her knees were caked in mud mixture that smelled like iron. She noticed a piece of metal poking through the mud and tried to pull it out. Her leg jerked and she hissed in pain once more. She would deal with it later. She went to put her right leg on the counter and felt a sharp ache in her thigh. “Son of a-”

She put her leg down and soaked the towel once more. She sat on the floor and wiggled her way out of the rest of her clothes. After the clothes had been kicked aside Drew began to carefully wiping away blood, mud and sweat. Once she was satisfied she began to remove all the metal she could leaving the larger pieces as they were too painful to remove on her own.

Reaching for her backpack without getting up hurt her thigh more than anything, but she was too tired and determined to care. She wanted to finish cleaning up so she could sleep. She dragged the backpack across the floor and opened it. Her fingers found the vial of ambrosia. Drew pulled it out of the bag, tossed the eyedropper aside and drank what little of the ambrosia was left. She felt the smaller scrapes heal. Then she grabbed the liquid bandage and the healing salve. 

She painted on the bandage on her smaller wounds then stood up carefully balancing on her left leg remembering she didn’t grab clean clothes. She held one of the towels in front of her and opened the door. “Hey, can one of you get me some clean clothes?”

“Yeah, Give me a second.” Valentina said.

“Thanks Dear.” Drew waited for her younger sister to return silently, adjusting her position to avoid falling over. 

Valentina returned with a pastel pink and purple robe. Drew took it with one hand as Valentina's eyes flicked down to her legs, “Do you need help?” she asked, voice filled with concern.

“No.” Drew said, quickly closing the door in the girl’s face.

Drew returned to her spot on the floor and yawned. She rubbed her eyes then unfolded the robe dropping a matching pair of boy shorts and a bralette. Inch by inch she put on the boy shorts trying to avoid every point of pain on her legs. The bra was easier to put on. 

The little bit of wakefulness she had was gone. She laid down, robe and pain forgotten and fell asleep.

Piper returned to her cabin after helping the rest of the seven, Reyna, and other cabin leaders locate the rest of the campers under their leadership. She knew her cabin mates had all returned. She wanted a shower like most campers did, but it was too late to argue over who got to shower first, so everyone seemed to collectively decide showers were closed for the night. 

Before returning to the Aphrodite Cabin she stopped at Canoe Lake deciding to rinse off the dirt and sweat. She decided she’d rather smell like the fishy lake than feel sticky the rest of the night.

Entering the cabin she found her siblings sitting on their beds quietly talking to each other. A few were whipping themselves down with makeup removing wipes and baby wipes. A glance around the room told her every one was there except one.

“Where’s Drew?”

“Piper, you're back.” Lacy said.

“We waited up for you.” Mitchell added.

“You didn’t have to.”

“I know.”

“Drew said we all had to check in. We figured it meant you too.”

“Where’s Drew?”

“Bathroom.” Valentina stated.

“She’s been in there since she got back.” Another sibling clarified. 

“How long has that been?”

“About an hour and a half.”

Piper made her way to the bathroom and knocked. “Drew, everyone made it back to the cabin alright. We’re gonna go to bed.”

No answer. Piper twisted the door knob finding it unlocked and pushed open the door. Drew was curled up on the floor in her underwear. Blood soaked towels were nearby. Piper stepped inside and saw Drew’s bloody shirt in the sink and the rest of her clothes near the towels. 

Piper knelt in front of her and gently shook her shoulder, “Drew, wake up.”

The Asian didn’t stir. 

Piper grabbed the girl's robe, put it on her and tied it closed. She looked out the door. A few of her siblings had gathered. 

“We can carry her.” Her twin fourteen-year-old brothers said. 

Piper nodded and stood up stepping back near the sink. The boys walked in and picked her up standing on either side of her. Piper noticed the cut on Drews leg. It was bleeding slightly. She followed her brothers out.

Lacy and Mitchell pulled back the blanket on Drew’s bed and the twins laid her on it. The white sheet began to turn pink. “Do any of you still have a stapler?”

“Yeah, I have mine, Piper.” Mitchell jogged to his bunk and grabbed it.

Piper and Lacy rolled Drew on her side revealing the gash. It was at least a few inches long. Piper pinched the skin together and Mitchell stapled it hoping his older sister wouldn’t wake up and yell at him.

A sister handed over what little bandages she had left and another fetched the salve from the bathroom. Piper bound Drew’s thigh and rolled her on her back. 

“Is all the blood in the bathroom hers?” a brother asked.

“No,” Piper said, “I would say much of it isn’t. If you want to go to bed you may. We’ll clean up tomorrow.”

As siblings returned to their bunks Piper, Lacy and Mitchell continued to patch up Drew. There wasn’t much to do. Drew had removed all the metal from her legs except for a few pieces. When they were done Piper left a bottle of draught for her with a note saying she didn’t need to worry about how much she drank since it wasn’t ambrosia.

Drew woke up to the sound of the cabin’s CD player playing a cabin favorite, Carly Rae Jepsen. She sat up slowly, her limbs feeling heavy. A few of her siblings were scrubbing the floor and she could see the light on in the bathroom.

“What’s going on?”

“You’re awake. You missed breakfast.”

“We’re just cleaning up the cabin.”

“I didn’t realize it was dirty.”

“You kinda left bloody footprints on the way to the bathroom last night. And some of us brought in mud. There’s the Roman’s water plus draught mixture on your nightstand. Piper said it doesn’t have the same deadly effects as ambrosia, so you can drink as much as you want.”

Drew pulled off her blanket and saw bandages wrapped around her thigh, both her knees and calves. Her eyes moved to her arms and found there was a bandage around one of them. “How-”

“You fell asleep in the bathroom. We brought you to bed and patched you up. Will was in here after breakfast to change your bandages.” Lacy explained.

Drew reached for the water bottle and twisted off the cap. She brought it to her lips. It tasted like regular water, but she could feel the soreness in her legs lessen. She put the bottle aside and carefully stood up. Her muscles felt weak, but she wasn’t shaking. Next she tried taking a few steps. They were slow, but she didn’t fall. Now all she had to do was get dressed.

By the time Drew got dressed (which would have gone faster if she had accepted her siblings help) it was time for lunch. She followed her siblings to the Mess Hall carrying the water bottle she had been taking sips from since she woke up. 

Lunch went as it usually did even with all the guests. Camp Jupiter separated by cabin willing to follow Camp Half-Blood’s rules about meals. When most were finished eating, Praetors Reyna and the only other one (Drew didn’t know much about him let alone his name) got up to speak to both camps. Drew noticed Reyna had the forearm where her tattoo was, wrapped. “Tomorrow morning,” Reyna began, “We Romans must return home. We appreciate your hospitality, especially since we almost killed you-”

“You almost  _ got _ killed,” Annabeth corrected.

Reyna rolled her eyes. The corners of her mouth turned up slightly and she said, “What _ ever _ , Chase.”

Campers burst into a collective “ _ Ooooohh!”  _ followed by laughter and playful shoving.

“Anyways,” the other Praetor said, “Reyna and I agree this marks a new era of friendship between the camps.”

Drew listened to the Praetors speak and the playful banter of others. Drew like to take it as a sign of their friendship sticking and their bond growing stronger. After all, Drew had learned the bonds between friends were often stronger and longer lasting than the bonds created from romantic love and hate, and she couldn’t wait to see what they could do with it.

**Author's Note:**

> I've noticed I don't always add detail where it is needed. If you see something where you think more detail was necessary (or anything else) let me know.


End file.
